Go for the M. Ed or try for Ed. D next year??

[MellylaMelle]

Hi there - 

I applied for doctoral programs in Education at a number of universities.  I was rejected from ALL of them... with the exception of TC Columbia, who did reject me from their doctoral program but offered me a place on their M. Ed program. 

Although I am very glad to have been offered SOMETHING, SOMEWHERE,  I am really up in arms as to whether or not to go for it.  

First of all, does anyone know if there is any funding at all available for people doing an M. Ed at Columbia?  I already have an MA in Applied Linguistics and TESOL from King's College London, and I have zero debt. Although I believe TC could definitely open some doors for me I am not sure I want to go into debt for it.  I am also married, and my husband is British, and although I'm in the process of getting him a visa to come to the US (I am American), for us to be in NYC he really needs to be working I think if I am doing this MA. 

 

Secondly, now that I know it IS possible for me to get admitted into a top tier school somewhere for something, is it worth it to possibly just try again next year but maybe try for an Ed D instead of a PhD?   I feel like I am going to have more opportunities for funding if I get into a doctoral program.  

Any and all advice is appreciated!  

[perpetuavix]

Usually, Masters programs in education are unfunded by the school, but you can find outsides sources of funding. I got my Masters almost entirely funded by an outside program. I know of other teachers who got their entire program paid for. I only know of this for teachers in high need areas, like math, science, or special education. Every English teacher I know has paid for their Masters. If you're doing ESL, though, there might be funding opportunities for that. 

There are definitely more funding opportunities for the PhD level. Not sure how many schools you applied to, but did you cast a wide enough net? There's always some amount of randomness in PhD admissions, so it's best to apply to a solid mix of schools. If you plan to wait another year, it's also a good idea to use that year to make yourself a more competitive candidate. Retake the GREs, if your scores are a little low. Take some classes as a non-degree student at a local university to show that you're serious about the subject matter. Go to a conference and network. 

Good luck to you!

[naomi6]

I'm in the same boat (measurement & evaluation program). I've applied to 5 PhD programs (received rejection from all 4 and still waiting on one). TC rejected me for their PhD program and offered the M.ed. I already have an MA in Psychology. You are the second person, I know from this forum who had been rejected for the PhD and accepted into the M.ed while already holding an MA. What is up with that?

Call your financial aid contact to see if you received any funding. Also, check with the program head to see about assistantship positions (RA or TA)... Assistantship comes with 6 credits tuition waivers). You could also look for external scholarships. One more thing, see how much of your previous credits you could transfer to this program. If all of that work out, you might not be in as much debt as predicted.

Also ask the program director how many M.ed students get accepted into their PhD or Ed.D program.

My mentor suggested I attend (she completed her PhD, M.ed, and Ed.D there). I haven't fully accept, I am waiting on one other application.

If you received funding, I say go for it especially since you don't have debt to start off with. Attending Columbia can definitely open more opportunities in the future (May definitely increase your chance of getting into a PhD program in the future).

I was in doubt about attending until I spoke with my mentor/employer who also attended teachers college.

[christinarrrrr]

Hey guys so I might be enrolling in the Ed.M program for measurement and evaluation at TC as well. I'm trying to decide between that, and the similar masters program at Penn GSE (STATISTICS, measurement, assessment, research technology). I'm just worried that the program at TC is very long. It requires a minimum of 60 credits, which is twice what most schools require for similar programs. Also, 6o credits isn't very far off from the required credit hours for a Ph.D, which is 75. The EdM program requires like 12 credits of just psychology courses and 6-9 credits of education courses. This is totally beyond what other programs require in terms of electives. So basically, it feel like the program is trying to milk us for our money, and that concerns me. Maybe I'm being paranoid, what do you guys think?

Also, do you guys know if the evaluation and measurement program at TC is very large? I keep reading that TC is this huge school, where it's easy to get lost in the shuffle. I recently spoke to another student who is enrolling in the statistics program, that he is having trouble just getting responses from his advisor :/